The Stonehouse Core Value Portfolio rose strongly in October (+2.46%), taking the 12 month rolling return to +8.5%, a welcome result for investors. The month saw the Australian share market finish up +4.0% and the MSCI World Index delivered a solid return of +2.7% (in AUD Hedged terms). The Australian Dollar (-2.2%) continued to weaken and Australian bonds were up (+1.1%) during the month.
All equity investments (Australian, International and Regional) produced positive returns. Outstanding performers during the month included Platinum International (+6.9%), Northcape Emerging Markets (+5.7%), Lazard Global Small Caps (+4.1%) and Old Mutual World Equity (+3.2%). Our Australian Equity managers SGH ICE (+4.1%) and Allan Gray (+3.9%) produced returns in line with the market, while LHC High Conviction (+1.2%) and IML Equity Income’s (+0.6%) performance was muted, although still positive. The Japanese equity market continues to go from strength to strength; and outperformed after Prime Minister Abe was re-elected in a decisive victory. Our dedicated exposure via the iShares MSCI Japan High Dividend ETF returned +5.9%; and the portfolio benefited from the Investment Committee’s decision to increase exposure to this holding earlier in the year. The additional regional holdings through J O Hambro Asia ex-Japan (+2.6%) and Lansdowne European Equity (+0.9%) also contributed to the portfolio’s performance.
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